The "Narwhals of the (North) South Pacific" finally came out of the kiln. The interior came out exactly as I had hoped- hard to make it out from the photo, but I used a combination of glazes for a "breaching" look in the watery interior of the mug. There's a narwhal's horn coming up at you- don't worry, it won't poke you.
The light shino glaze didn't come out quite as mottled as I had hoped- I'm thinking about adding another coat of glaze (another color) and re-firing, especially w/ more time before the swap ends- would love any feedback for your opinion. The narwhals' bodies are a silver grey.

Slightly frustrated with the glaze, I pulled a MDM and started working on another piece that I had already sketched out. I hand rolled a slab, then used a tile cutter to cut out a small square...
Then hand built a small cylinder....
Then used slip to attach it to the tile, then rolled an even thinner slab to give the cylinder a "roof."
I then formed the requisite brow, half of a nose, and two half ears and attached it to the cylinder. Top view:
Here's a side (front?) view- can you see where I'm going with this one yet?
I then added a big ol' shark fin, using extra clay to hold it upright as it cures.

This will (potentially) be "Underwater Delight" for the Art Swap. I plan on using a similar glaze combination (from the interior of the Narwhal mug) to create the splashes of color for the Moai (sinking) and the shark (breaching). I'll add two separate indentations on the back for different hanging options. Would love any feedback... sorry for the longer than usual post....

Glad things are on track for you Badd Tiki, waiting to see what you've got going.

TikiAno, the inside of that mug is awesome, love the colors and the variation at the very bottom. The outside is very shiny but you are right about not having much color. The sinking Moai is very cool!

I sanded the failed underglaze off the nautilus, roughing it up a bit in the process. I also poured some vinegar on it hoping to acid etch it a bit. I painted the underglaze back on and fired it, it seems to have stuck this time. Now some clear glaze and back into the kiln tomorrow. Hopefully it's not so smooth the clear glaze doesn't stick.

the mug is great. I've only re-glazed one piece (inside of a bowl so it was easy). My instructor had me heat it up in the oven to 250*, guess it helped the water evaporate faster since it can't soak in the clay. With the outside of a cup it might be hard to get it to stick.

I guess the bonus is you can easily wipe it off if it doesn't seem to be working. Guess you are also firing your own piece so you can do it and stick it right in the kiln without worry about it in the mean time.

More shino would make the narwhal stick out better and he's (she?) a cute little guy so I say go for it. Either way it's a nice mug

Thanks, all. Thanks for the advice, Badd! I've read that heating it up first in an oven prior to glazing might help, or by adding gum tragacanth (?) to the glaze or before applying the glaze. Since we have time, I will do a test tile first w/ this application, then see what happens to it. If it's a no-go (& since I don't have my own kiln) I might bake it at home, then glaze it like you suggested. Look forward to seeing what you're working on.

Ok, here is what I've been working on. The white space inside the tribal inspired design will be filled in with an underwater scene. I'm a little frightened by the calender at this point seeing as I am also in the midst of a basement reno. I am trying to scale back on the detail a bit to help meet the deadline. There might be an allnighter at the end of the month. If I get that far. Yikes.
Looking at everyone's great project idea's is giving me a push.

_________________"Primitive man's work has become modern man's leisure."

Tabu, I see a tropical scene overlaid with a reef scene within a tribal shape. I can only describe it one way - BITCHIN'!
_________________When you hurry through life, you just get to the end faster.
Pirate Ship Tree House

Hmmmm, something odd afoot. The overglaze flaked off the nautilus shell again, I thought it might. Even after my sanding and acid etching, it was still too smooth. BUT, the yellow underglaze is flaking off the sea slug too and I don't know why

Good thing we extended the deadline, looks like I'll be starting all over again on this project _________________When you hurry through life, you just get to the end faster.
Pirate Ship Tree House

Tabu that's such a wonderful painting.
MadDogMike we use a wire brush when that happens and then give up on the under glazes and use a real glaze. Scrubbing with a scratchy pad after the sanding helps too. Once you have a base coat you can use an enamel paint for the other color. Good Luck.